Five Books To Read If You Want My Job

This came out of a conversation I had today with a few other test leads. the question was, “What are the top 5 books you should read if you want my job?” My job in this case being that of a test development lead. At Microsoft that means I lead a team (or teams) of people whose job it is to write software which automatically tests the product.

Behind Closed Doors by Johanna Rothman – One of the best books on practical management that I’ve run across. 1:1’s, managing by walking around, etc.

This is not an exhaustive list. There is a lot more to learn than what is represented in these books, but these will touch on the essentials. If you have additional suggestions, please leave them in the comments.

Refactoring, by Martin Fowler is an excellent read for anyone who has to deal with other peoples code in their absense, which is pretty common these days I’d guess. Lessons Learned in Software Testing by Kaner and Bach is another worthwhile read as is Automated Software Testing: Introduction, Management, and Performance by Elfriede Dustin.